Is there a future for Alec Bohm with the Philadelphia Phillies?
It's hard to imagine a more frustrating Philadelphia Phillies player in recent years than Alec Bohm.
The Phillies selected Bohm with the third overall pick of the 2018 MLB Draft, so there were obviously huge expectations for him at the time. And early on, he appeared to be meeting them, as he slashed .338/.400/.481 over 44 games in 2020.
Since then, however, Bohm has been a massive disappointment.
Bohm owns a lifetime .736 OPS and has been a very poor defender throughout his career, and with the 29-year-old slated to hit free agency this offseason, Phillies fans can't run him out of town fast enough.
But is there a chance that Bohm actually sticks around?
His overall numbers this year aren't pretty, as he is slashing .248/.309/.390. But believe it or not, he is third on the team with 82 RBI, and he is batting an impressive .331 with runners in scoring position.
Additionally, Bohm is slashing .306/.366/.457 since the All-Star break. In August, he batted .327. Through 11 games in September, he owns a .906 OPS.
So is there potentially room for Bohm in a bench or platoon role?
Bohm surely wants to start, but I'm just not sure how much interest there will be on the open market for a poor-fielding corner infielder who doesn't really have much power.
The right-handed Bohm hits lefties very well, owning a career .301/.349/.503 slash line against them. So does a world exist in which the Phillies retain Bohm?
It will depend on the price, obviously. They would surely prefer to keep him on a short-term deal if they did decide to bring him back, and they wouldn't want to pay him starter money.
Plus, the potential of a 2027 salary cap could rule out a return altogether.
But this is suddenly a much different discussion than it was earlier in the season when Bohm was busy posting a .426 OPS between March and April.
It's worth noting that the Omaha, Ne. native has always been better during the second half, but he was never that bad early on.
Perhaps Bohm's dreadful start was just a result of the unfortunate off-the-field issues he had been dealing with, and things eventually spiraled.
But now, Bohm looks pretty comfortable at the plate, and he's making an argument to remain in Philadelphia. Under very specific circumstances, of course.
